Tell me ye knowing and discerning few Where I may find a friend that’s firm and true Who dares stand by me when in deep distress And then his love and friendship most express Who by a secret sympathy can share My joy, my grief, my misery my care He must be prudent, faithful, just and wise, Who can to such a pitch of friendship rise.

Bolton & Co. Verse:: 66
Full Text: Tell me ye knowing and discerning few Where I may find a friend that’s firm and true Who dares stand by me when in deep distress And then his love and friendship most express Who by a secret sympathy can share My joy, my grief, my misery my care He must be prudent, faithful, just and wise, Who can to such a pitch of friendship rise.
Listed on Page Number: 264
Sampler Worked By: Catherine Keeler
Date of Sampler: 1718
Place Sampler Made: n.p.
Sampler Listed on Page: 57
Author/Publication/Country/Date: DuFour, Phillippe Sylvester. “Friendship” in Moral Instructions for Youth: or, A Father’s Advice to a Son. Translated from the French (1685), H. Kent, London, 1743. p.96.
Notes: Also used in: Hughes, Susannah, 1793. 9 years old, n.p.; p.54; Gibson, Elizabeth, 1800. Farmville, VA, 10 years old, p162; Watts, Jane, 1776. n.p., p. 84. https://www.google.com/books/edition/Moral_Instructions_of_a_Father_to_His_So/qyJwowhIqIcC?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=tell+me+ye+knowing+and+discerning+few&pg=PA96&printsec